By Dave Pedersen

Correspondent

Sibley County Administrator Matt Jaunich looked into how overtime pay affects the county and discovered a big fluctuation in recent years. What Jaunich discovered was presented to the board of commissioners at the meeting on Tuesday, May 14.

“We had over 8,300 hours in overtime in 2011, which dropped down to over 5,000 in 2012,” said Jaunich. “Looking at the first part of 2013, I notice we are on pace to be 44 percent higher than last year.”

Overtime is for anything over 40 hours paid at time and a half or as extra hours. The cost to the county for overtime dropped from around $230,000 in 2011 to about $137,000 last year.

“Most departments are on pace to be either at the same or below last year except the highway maintenance department and the highway shop,” said Jaunich about how both departments have already exceeded last year’s totals for overtime. “We all can understand that with the amount of snow we had this spring.”

By Kurt Menk

Editor

The Sibley East School Board, during a special meeting on Monday night, May 13, voted 4-0 and approved a motion to offer the senior high principal position to Tim Schellhammer.

School Board members Brian Brandt, Beth DuFrane, Anne Karl and Missy Weber all voted in favor of the motion. School Board members Scott Dose and Dan Woehler were not present at the special meeting.

Schellhammer was one of two finalists selected for an interview on Monday night, May 13. The other finalist, Amanda Bomstad, a high school counselor at the Mankato West High School, withdrew from consideration early Monday morning, May 13, according to current Senior High Principal and incoming Superintendent Jim Amsden.

Sibley East Elementary Principal Mari Lu Martens, a member of the Minnesota Elementary School Principals’ Association (MESPA), was recently selected as Minnesota’s 2013 National Distinguished Principal (NDP).  MESPA and the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) presented the prestigious award, with corporate sponsorship from VALIC. 

The NDP program was established in 1984 to honor exemplary elementary and middle school principals who set the pace, character, and quality of education children receive during their early school years. The program highlights the fundamental importance of the school principal in achieving educational excellence for pre-kindergarten through eighth grade students and reinforces their continued leadership in helping children develop a lifelong love of learning. One NDP principal is chosen annually from each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

“It is about doing things right, and doing the right things,” said Martens. “Collectively all of us are responsible for student achievement, from the nourishment provided by food service, to the Problem Solving Team that is monitoring student progress. At Sibley East we are teachers and learners who continue to define and redefine what we know and are able to do.”